12 Nov 2013
Revelation 12:14-17
Revelation 12:14: “And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.”
“a time, and times, and half a time” is the same thing as “a year, and two years, and half a year”, which amounts to 3.5 years. This is the same interval of time that we saw earlier in the chapter. Satan is determined to destroy Israel, but God will divinely protect her:
Revelation 12:15: “And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.”
Once Satan sees that he can’t harm the Jews, he will turn his attention elsewhere – specifically, to believers:
Revelation 12:17: “And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”
Things were bad for Christians before all of this happened, but now they are about to get a great deal worse. This will be a terrible time for believers to be alive on the planet, but those who endure to the end will be saved.